Book reviews: Travels in the Kalahari

Roxanne Reid writes about the Kgalagadi landscape and animals from a visitor’s point of view. She has a wonderfully chatty style that makes it feel as if she’s sharing a fireside tale.If you’ve been to the Kgalagadi, you will identify with many of her experiences: sand that gets in everywhere, opportunistic hyena, towering grasses that obscure game, lazy lions almost within arm’s reach, deep silence and star-crusted skies. But like a true journalist Roxanne also keeps her ear to the ground for more unusual stories. She writes about the family that had to abandon their 4x4 in the middle of nowhere, the couple who towed a 44-year-old road caravan to Nossob, and the rangers who nearly walked into a lion. I thoroughly enjoyed every moment I spent in Roxanne’s company – she is an observant traveller who delights in sharing amusing stories but doesn’t shy away from thorny issues either.Thanks to this superb collection of essays you too can find out what it’s like to eat a Kalahari truffle, stay in an unfenced wilderness camp and watch game at a waterhole from the comfort of your camping chair. If you haven’t been to the Kgalagadi yet, this book will surely inspire you to go.Magriet Kruger, Wild magazine

It’s not often that you read a personal journey that makes you feel like you have travelled alongside the author every step of the way. Roxanne Reid’s latest travelogue, Travels in the Kalahari takes you on an enchanted adventure through the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. Her fireside manner makes for easy reading as she invites you to relive her experiences in the Kalahari. From camping under the stars, to walking with a bushman and befriending a meerkat, Roxanne’s compilation of short stories explores the realities of Kalahari living. Interwoven in her tales are the very real environmental issues that face this remote area due to increasing tourism and development. What I loved most about the travelogue is that it captures the essence of this beautiful place and describes the exquisite relationship that exists between mankind and nature. I particularly enjoyed her encounter with Fizzle, an orphaned meerkat, taken from his mother and sold as a pet. A truly heart warming chapter in this wonderful book! Michael Lorentz, Safarious

[The] book is a collection of stories and anecdotes with the theme of conservation and appreciation running through them. A few of the stories will stay with me for a long time, such as the one about Danie and Joy Mostert, who conquered the infamous Kgalagadi gravel roads in an ancient caravan. Another fascinating person Reid met is animal behaviourist Dr Anne Rasa, an expert on insects, beetles, scorpions and geckos. Together, they followed [an orphaned] meerkat named Fizzle that Dr Rasa was trying to introduce to the wild.Even if you haven’t had the chance to visit the Kgalagadi, you’ll enjoy these stories and may be inspired to go – hence the last chapter, which is a guide for visitors.Gerrie van Eeden, Drive Out magazine, June 2013

[The book] acts as an ode to the beauty and subtleties of the rugged wilderness of Kruger’s quieter cousin, as well as sharing the insider’s wisdom of an experienced Kalahari campaigner. It’s an easy to read from cover to cover, [offering] a combination of anecdotal storytelling and critical discussion. It has been written by someone with a real and deep connection to the place. Reid combines descriptions of the beauty of the landscape and accounts of amazing game sights with considered discussions of frustrations with infrastructure and planning, seemingly inevitable in an environment not-conducive to human habitation. She thus relates the way in which one has to take the not-so-good with the good, which keeps one coming back year after year. ‘One day – perhaps long after you have left it behind – you’ll realise it has wormed its way into your heart,’ she writes. The book is not only for those familiar with the Kgalagadi. Prospective bushveld holiday first-timers or even those looking for a closer, quieter alternative to Kruger could gain valuable insight into the particularly laid-back pace of life and the ‘humbling silence’ of the Kgalagadi. You could also learn a lot about how to plan your holiday in the park by taking a careful look at the need-to-know section. Anecdotes of interactions with a local tracker left me chuckling. Her descriptions of the ever-changing physical beauty of the place are complemented by the portraits she paints of the people who live and work in the Kalahari, from grinning guides and bashful camp attendants to professors rehabilitating meerkat pups. As a bit of a sucker for bush trivia I also enjoyed the bush facts which she has dotted throughout the book. Paul Maughan-Brown, Getaway magazine

For off-road travellers, the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is a major attraction, arguably more wild and natural than Kruger. In this new e-book, Roxanne Reid describes multiple visits to the area.Having visited more than 20 times, the author has an in-depth knowledge of the park; and this includes its history, its animals, its people, its facilities and its problems. [The] book is organised in short chapters … Some stories are wistful and others are joyous; a couple are grumpy and a few are rather exciting – detailing close encounters with dangerous game. It’s very clear that the author has a deep affection for this park and for this reason she is occasionally saddened (and critical) of recent developments … Happily, the book ends with essential information: contact and trip details, where to stay, what routes to take and what to take with you. All vital stuff that will help you plan your own Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park trip.Jess Fogarty & Neil Harrison, SA 4x4 magazine, July 2013

Travels in the Kalahari is more a recollection than a story – writer Roxanne Reid lets readers share in her memories of travels through the ‘land of thirst’ — a place she’s clearly passionate about. Written in conversational style, the book is not a scientific record of sightings nor a single story about a journey. Chapter for chapter, it reads like a lighthearted guide gleaned from personal and overheard experience, with amusing tales, shocking events and interesting people. It’s a great read, whether or not you have been to the Kalahari, as her love for the area is infectious and made me long to go back. Reid has been to the Kalahari more than two dozen times. Her experiences range from getting to know the mind of a tracker, driving along one of the Kgalagadi National Park’s 4×4 trails to a close look at the life of a meerkat. This is Reid’s third book, and it is highly recommended for would-be Kalahari travellers. It would make a great gift for friends you’re hoping to infect with a love for the vast, red dunes and intense quiet that is the Kalahari. Anzet du Plessis, Leisure Wheels, July 2013

Easy, informative and light reading, Travels in the Kalahari provides the perfect dose of adventure and experience, the kind of knowledge and understanding that only someone who is intimately familiar with the Kalahari Park would have access to.The book is written in a delightfully conversational tone that modestly conveys this familiarity and truly expresses Roxanne's passion and love for the Kalahari. Comprising several short-story styled chapters, the book divulges a few helpful tidbits of information, the kind of stuff worth knowing when visiting the National Park. Roxanne opens your eyes to even the smallest wonders found in the Kalahari and by doing so whets your appetite for the wild and makes you long for an experience equal to hers.Her subtle humour and raw experience give this book a wonderfully flowing narrative, which keeps you enthralled every step of the way as she explores the realities of Kalahari living, as well as some of the crucial environmental issues currently affecting the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. We definitely recommend the read. Great book. Pros: Short chapters; easy, descriptive reading; light reading; diverse subject matter; conservation focus.Claire Townsend, Safarious

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